So who wants true representation after all the cheers are jeers are done? [Pic courtesy sarynippf.wordpress.com] |
The existing electoral system is seen as a serious
problem and one which encourages corruption and violence. This was observed by President Maithripala
Sirisena in his manifesto. He also
observed that it is an issue that successive governments failed to
address. He pledged to abolish the
existing system. The replacement would
be a mix of the first-past-the-post system and the proportional representation
system. Through this, he argued, every
electorate would have a representative over and above the elimination of
corruption and violence (see page 15 of Maithripala Sirisena’s manifesto).
In the 100-days program designed to operationalize
key elements of the manifesto, the following were pledged: “On January 28 An all party
committee will be set up to put forward proposals to replace the current
Preference Vote system and replace it with an Mixed Electoral System that
ensures representation of individual Members for Parliamentary Constituencies,
with mechanisms for proportionality. On Monday March 2 new elections laws will be prepared in accordance with the
proposals put forward by the all party committee. On Tuesday March 17 Amendments to change the system of elections will be placed before
Parliament and passed as swiftly as possible.”
Even the most ardent supporters of this Government
would concede that the 100 Days’ Program is extremely ambitious. On the other hand very few, including the
most ardent critics of the Government, would trash every element of the
manifesto and this program. Even fewer would defend the existing electoral
system. As such, no one would object if
it took this government more than 100 days to put in place a different system
that effectively eliminates violence and corruption while making for more
wholesome representation. Thus, a few
days’ delay is eminently forgivable not least of all because this is a system
that the people have had to live with for almost 26 years.
Thus is it possible to offer a generous reading of
the silence and inaction of the Government on this process which by the
President’s own admission is all-important and certainly a cornerstone of
institutional reform. However, given the
‘Robin Hood Budget’ that is total antithetical to the general thrust of the
United National Party’s thinking on the economy, one must wonder if everyone is
thinking more about election than about electoral reform.
A change in the system would certainly put at risk
the parliamentary seat of almost every MP.
The President’s manifesto speaks of a General Election sometime after
April 2015. That’s just three months
away. The Parliamentary Select Committee
on Electoral Reform appointed by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and headed
by Dinesh Gunawardena deliberated for years before coming up with a proposal
which of course was then left to gather dust.
It is hard to imagine that a new lot, even if more efficient than the
committee headed by Gunawardena, would get cracking and give us a relevant amendment
in six weeks.
As things stand, the Government could say ‘we
promised elections and we will hold them with or without electoral
reform’. However, that would mean the
continuity of the same ‘corrupt and violent system’ rubbished by the President
in his manifesto and the election of, yes, ‘the corrupt and violent’. It would be far more sensible to take the
time to amend the act and finish the delimitation exercise that must
necessarily follow and then hold elections.
This parliament can sit through until April 2016, after all. Why saddle the people for 5-6 years more with
yet another parliament made of members elected through a flawed process?
In any event, this mixed-system supposedly based on
the ‘German Model’ (as proposed by the Gunawardena-led committee) does not
include a key element of the template, the election of candidates by the
respective membership of the particular party in each electorate (as opposed to
being ‘selected’ by party hierarchies).
If democratization is the desire, then there cannot be shortcuts.
The Government can and should take the time and
trouble. It is unlikely that the people
will revolt if there’s a delay as long as it is evident that there is clear
direction and commitment.
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